Graphical representation of assets stored on a portable media device

ABSTRACT

A user interfaces can deliver enhanced information regarding media assets stored on a portable media device. A graphical user interface for database browsing and navigation can include a list of values of a metadata item and a graphical representation of the distribution of media assets across the values on the list, such as a pie chart where the size of different wedges reflects the fraction of media assets having a particular value. As a user browses a list, the graphical representation can be modified to emphasize the correspondence between different graphical elements and different entries on the list.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No.: 60/967,566 entitled “Graphical Representation ofAssets”, filed on Sep. 4, 2007, and which disclosure is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to media devices and moreparticularly, to techniques for navigating content and information usinga media device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A portable media device (“PMD”) stores media assets, such as audiotracks, video tracks or photos that can be played or displayed on theportable media device. One example of a portable media device may be theiPod™ portable media device, currently available from Apple Inc. ofCupertino, Calif. Often, a portable media device acquires its mediaassets from a host computer that serves to enable a user to manage mediaassets. As an example, the host computer can execute a media managementapplication to manage media assets.

One example of a media management application may be iTunes®, producedby Apple Inc. Once a user has interfaced with the media managementapplication, the portable media device may provide additionalapplications which may provide further media management capabilities,allowing the user to navigate, arrange, or playback particular mediaassets. These further media management capabilities may use the displayof the portable media device to interface with the user.

Due to the ease with which audio tracks and video tracks may bedownloaded from online sources, stored, and played back on portablemedia devices such as the iPod™, large numbers of stored tracks can beavailable on a PMD. Large numbers of tracks of differing types, whoseresidency on a PMD may be transitory, create a substantial navigationand management challenge for the user and PMD manufacturer alike. Interms of being able to concisely present an efficient and user friendlyinterface, it would be highly beneficial to present the user with agraphical interface with a screen presence exemplifying and delineatingstored track information in such a way that the user may be able toquickly glean information about content stored on the PMD.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention provide user interfaces thatdeliver enhanced information regarding media assets stored on a portablemedia device. The portable media device stores media assets and valuesof various metadata items (e.g., track name, artist name, genre, mediatype, etc.) associated with the media assets and provides a graphicaluser interface for selecting media assets based on values of differentmetadata items (e.g., selecting by media type, then genre, then artist).At a particular stage of selection, the graphical user interface caninclude a list of values of a particular metadata item and can furtherinclude a graphical representation of the distribution of media assetsacross the values on the list. For example, the graphical representationcan be a pie chart in which each wedge corresponds to a different valueof the metadata item, and the size of each wedge can be determined basedon a measure of the quantity of media assets associated with thecorresponding metadata value. Quantity can be measured by variousstandards; in one embodiment, the size of a wedge can be proportional tothe number of media assets associated with the corresponding metadatavalue, while in another embodiment, the size of a wedge can beproportional to the track length of the media assets associated with thecorresponding metadata value. Other measures of quantity can also beused. In addition, the graphical element corresponding to a particularmetadata value can be subdivided to show the proportion of media assetshaving various values for a different metadata item. As a user browses alist, the graphical representation can be modified to emphasize thecorrespondence between different graphical elements and different valueson the list.

In one aspect, the present invention relates to a method of graphicallyrepresenting media assets stored on a portable media device. A firstportion of a display of the portable media device can present a listingof values of a first metadata item associated with media assets in aninitial set of media assets. A second portion of the display can presenta graphical representation comprising a number of elements, with eachelement being associated with a different one of the values of the firstmetadata item; the relative sizes of the elements represent adistribution of the media assets in the initial set of media assetsacross the plurality of values of the first metadata item.

In another aspect, the present invention relates to method ofgraphically representing a playlist of media assets being played on aportable media device. A first portion of a display of the portablemedia device presents a listing of identifiers of each of the mediaassets on the playlist. A second portion of the display presents agraphical representation including an element corresponding to each ofthe media assets on the playlist, wherein a respective size of eachelement of the graphical representation reflects a duration of thecorresponding media asset on the playlist.

In another embodiment, the present invention relates to a graphical userinterface for a portable media device having a store of media assets.The graphical user interface includes a user input control, a firstdisplay area, a second display area, and a processor. The user inputcontrol is operable by a user to make a selection. The first displayarea is configured to display a list having a number of entries, eachentry corresponding to a different one of a number of values for ametadata item. Each of the entries on the list is selectable byoperation of the user input control. The second display area isconfigured to display, in coordination with displaying the list, agraphical representation comprising a number of elements, each elementbeing associated with a different one of the values of the metadataitem. Relative sizes of the elements represent a distribution of themedia assets across the plurality of values of the first metadata item.The processor is configured to receive a user selection of one of theentries on the list from the user input control and to update the listarea and the graphical representation area to highlight both theselected entry and the one of the graphical elements that corresponds tothe same value of the metadata item as the selected entry.

The following detailed description, together with the accompanyingdrawings, will provide a better understanding of the nature andadvantages of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a portable media device according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a GUI image that can be generated and displayedaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a process that can be used to generate piechart 208 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates another GUI image that can be generated and displayedaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates still another GUI image that can be generated anddisplayed when a user navigates into a genre according to an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a process that can be used to managenavigation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention provide user interfaces thatdeliver enhanced information regarding media assets stored on a portablemedia device. The portable media device stores media assets and valuesof various metadata items (e.g., track name, artist name, genre, mediatype, etc.) associated with the media assets and provides a graphicaluser interface for selecting media assets based on values of differentmetadata items (e.g., selecting by media type, then genre, then artist).At a particular stage of selection, the graphical user interface caninclude a list of values of a particular metadata item and can furtherinclude a graphical representation of the distribution of media assetsacross the values on the list. For example, the graphical representationcan be a pie chart in which each wedge corresponds to a different valueof the metadata item, and the size of each wedge can be determined basedon a measure of the quantity of media assets associated with thecorresponding metadata value. Quantity can be measured by variousstandards; in one embodiment, the size of a wedge can be proportional tothe number of media assets associated with the corresponding metadatavalue, while in another embodiment, the size of a wedge can beproportional to the track length of the media assets associated with thecorresponding metadata value. Other measures of quantity can also beused. In addition, the graphical element corresponding to a particularmetadata value can be subdivided to show the proportion of media assetshaving various values for a different metadata item. As a user browses alist, the graphical representation can be modified to emphasize thecorrespondence between different graphical elements and different valueson the list.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of portable media device (“PMD”) 110 accordingto an embodiment of the present invention. PMD 100 can include processor105 coupled to storage medium 115, display 135, and user input device150.

Processor 105 can also be communicably coupled to one or more user inputdevices 150 (e.g., touch screen, click wheel, scroll wheel, buttons,knobs, etc.) to receive user input.

Storage medium 115, which can be implemented, e.g., using nonvolatilesemiconductor memory, hard disk drive, or the like, stores media assets140 (also referred to herein as “tracks”) in digital form. Assets 140can include any type of media content that can be stored in digital formand experienced by a user; examples include songs, podcasts, audiobooks,video clips, movies, recorded television or radio broadcasts,photographs, slide shows, other still images, and so on. Each mediaasset 140 can have metadata 142 associated with it, and metadata 142 caninclude any data descriptive of characteristics of asset 140. Forinstance, metadata 142 may include a media type (e.g., music, video,photo, audiobook, podcast, etc.); digital encoding information; tracktitle; track length (e.g., playing time); artist; genre and sub-genreclassification; and the like. Some or all of metadata 142 can bespecified by a user or automatically created and updated based on useractions. For instance, a user may be able to assign a rating to asset140 or include asset 140 on a playlist, and metadata 142 associated witheach asset 140 may reflect such user operations. As another example, anumber of times asset 140 has been played may be stored as metadata 142and automatically updated by PMD 110 each time asset 140 is played.

In some embodiments, the number of media assets 140 that can be storedis limited only by the capacity of storage medium 115. Given thesubstantial volume of data storage provided by modern storage media, alarge number of assets 140 (e.g., thousands or tens of thousands oftracks, corresponding to tens or hundreds of hours of playback time) maybe stored. The large number of stored media assets 140 may create aformidable challenge for a user in understanding how many and/or whattypes of media assets are stored in PMD 110. Some embodiments of thepresent invention provide user interface enhancements that can help inaddressing this challenge, as described below.

In operation, processor 105 can implement graphical user interface(“GUI”) engine 152 as well as database engine 154, and playback engine156. The various “engines” 152, 154, 156 can each be implemented, e.g.,as program code (software or firmware) that is stored in PMD 110 (e.g.,in storage medium 115 or other storage not explicitly shown) executableby processor 105. Database engine 154, which can be of conventionaldesign, provides various capabilities related to searching, browsing,and selecting assets 140 or groups of assets 140 from storage medium115. Playback engine 156, which can also be of conventional design,provides capabilities related to presenting selected media assets 140from storage medium 115 to a user. In some embodiments, playback engine156 may provide video portions of media assets 140 to display 135 and/orprovide audio portions of media assets 140 to an audio output section(not explicitly shown in FIG. 1).

GUI engine 152, which can provide various user interface featuresdescribed below, can interact with display 135 and user input device 150to provide a graphical user interface, allowing a user to controloperation of PMD 110. GUI engine 152 can control display 135 to presentuser interface elements such as text menus, icons or the like, and userinput device 150 can be operated by a user to interact with thedisplayed user interface elements (e.g., selecting or activating anelement, thereby giving an instruction to PMD 110). In one embodiment,user input device 150 includes a touch-sensitive element overlayingdisplay 135, providing a touch screen interface. In another embodiment,user input device 150 can include a distinct device such as a clickwheel, touch pad, or scroll wheel. In any event, GUI engine 152 canreflect the operation of user input device 150 by updating display 135,e.g., to change which item on a menu is highlighted for selection. TheGUI can enable the user to control any aspect of PMD 110, includinglocating and selecting media assets 140 to be played, controllingplayback (e.g., play, pause, fast forward, rewind, etc.), adjustingplayback settings (volume, equalizer, etc.), and so on.

In some embodiments PMD 110 can also be connected to a host computer(not shown) that provides additional media management capabilities,including the ability to store additional assets 140 in storage medium115 and/or to remove assets 140 from storage medium 115. Alternatively,PMD 110 can communicate wirelessly with a source of media assets (e.g.,via a wireless connection to the Internet) and can obtain media assetswithout connecting to a host computer. Thus the assets 140 stored instorage medium 115 may change from time to time.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, assets can berepresented graphically in a manner that can provide the user with abetter understanding of the content stored on PMD 110.

FIG. 2 illustrates GUI image 200 that can be generated by GUI engine 152and presented on display 135 of PMD 110 according to an embodiment ofthe present invention. GUI image 200 can provide text menu 206 in afirst area 202 and corresponding pie chart 208 in a second area 204.Text menu 206 provides a list of media assets or categories orclassifications of media assets, and the particular content of text menu206 can depend on user input. In the example shown in FIG. 2, a user haschosen to browse music assets by genre, and text menu 206 provides alist of genres (as indicated in menu title bar 210). Each entry 212 a-din text menu 206 includes the name of a genre (e.g., “alternative,”“ambient,” “dance,” “punk”) that is represented among stored mediaassets 140. (As used herein, a category is “represented” among storedmedia assets 140 if at least one stored media asset 140 belongs to thatcategory.) Entries 212 a-d can be presented in alphabetical order or anyother order that may assist a user in locating a particular entry. Eachentry 212 a-d can also include other information, such as an indicationof the number of artists associated with stored media assets that belongto each genre. If the number of genres represented exceeds the spaceavailable in area 202, a scroll bar, up/down arrows, or other GUIelement (not explicitly shown) can be provided to allow the user to viewdifferent portions of the list.

Pie chart 208, which can be dynamically created by GUI engine 152,graphically represents a breakdown of music assets by genre. In thisembodiment, each wedge 220 a-e corresponds to a different genre listedin text menu 206. All genres can be represented at once in pie chart208, even if not all genres are currently visible in area 202; thus, inthis example pie chart 208 has 5 wedges 220 a-e while only four textentries 212 a-d are visible. Area 204 can also contain otherinformation, such as an asset count 226 and/or a playing time indicator224.

The size of each pie wedge 220 a-e can determined according to therelative quantities of assets of different genres stored on the PMD.FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of process 300 that can be used by GUI engine152 to generate pie chart 208 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. Process 300 can start (step 302), e.g., when a user selectsdatabase navigation by genre. At step 304, GUI engine 152 queriesdatabase engine 154 to obtain a list of all genres represented amongstored media assets 140. This list can be used to generate text menu 206as well as pie chart 208.

At step 306, GUI engine 152 can query database engine 154 to determinethe number of assets (N_(g)) in each represented genre (g). Depending onthe implementation of database engine 154, a single query may return allnumbers N_(g), or GUI engine 152 can make multiple queries, e.g., onefor each genre g. At step 308, GUI engine 152 can determine the totalnumber of represented media assets (N_(Total)), e.g., by summing N_(g)over all genres g. At step 310, GUI engine 152 can compute a fractionf_(g)=N_(g)/N_(Total), which represents the fraction of assets belongingto the genre g. It should be noted that where N_(Total) is determined bysumming over all N_(g), the fractions f_(g) will add to 1.

At step 312, GUI engine 152 can use the fractions f_(g) to determine thesize and position of the pie wedge associated with each genre. Forexample, multiplying f_(g) by 2π provides the angle in radians subtendedby the wedge. The orientation of each wedge can be determined from anarrangement rule for the wedges and the angle information. Variousarrangement rules can be used. For instance, in one embodiment, adjacentpie wedges (e.g., wedges 220 a and 220 b in FIG. 2) correspond toadjacent items in text menu 206 (e.g., items 212 a and 212 b). Piewedges can also be arranged in order of decreasing or increasing area(e.g., wedges might become successively smaller proceeding clockwisearound the pie chart) or in any other convenient manner.

At step 314, GUI engine 152 can display the pie chart, and process 300can end (step 316). The user can continue to interact with the resultingdisplay, e.g., as described below.

It will be appreciated that process 300 is illustrative and thatvariations and modifications are possible. Steps described as sequentialmay be executed in parallel, order of steps may be varied, and steps maybe modified or combined. In addition, measures other than number oftracks can be used to determine the sizes of the various pie wedges. Forexample, playing time for tracks in a given genre as a fraction of totalplaying time of all music tracks can be used.

In some embodiments, a track can be assigned to multiple genres. Inprocess 300, tracks assigned to multiple genres can be counted as aseparate track for each genre to which they belong. If the total numberof tracks N_(Total) is determined by summing the number of tracks ineach genre as described above, the fractions f_(g) add to 1 and a piechart can be drawn as described above. Alternatively, the total numberof tracks N_(Total) can reflect the total number of distinct tracks,while the track is counted once for each genre it is in. This can resultin the fractions f_(g) summing to more than 1 to the extent that tracksare assigned to multiple genres. In this case, a pie chart can still bedrawn if the wedges are allowed to overlap. Thus, the assignment of atrack to multiple genres can be represented graphically, e.g., byoverlapping adjacent pie wedges to the extent that the same track isassociated with both genres. (If different colors are used for differentwedges, the overlap can be highlighted, e.g., by blending the colors ofthe two wedges in the overlap region.)

Referring again to FIG. 2, GUI image 200 can include highlighting forone of the genres. For instance, a user can scroll up and/or downthrough text menu 206, causing each entry 212 a-d to be highlighted inturn. FIG. 2 shows highlighting as a dotted box around ambient genre 212b. More generally, highlighting of a text menu entry can be accomplishedby changing foreground and/or background colors, changing fonts,applying a text mark, or any other change that makes the highlightedentry distinctive from the rest.

As shown in FIG. 2, when the user highlights a particular entry (e.g.,entry 212 b) in text menu 206, the corresponding pie wedge (e.g., wedge220 b) can also be highlighted. Highlighting of a pie wedge can include,e.g., intensifying or changing the color of the highlighted wedgerelative to non-highlighted wedges, enlarging the displayed wedge andshifting it outward from the pie, applying animations to the highlightedwedge (e.g., glistening, flashing, transitioning to a new color,expanding, shifting position), or the like. Thus, as the user scrollsthrough text menu 206 such that different ones of genres 212 a-d arehighlighted, different pie wedges 220 a-d can also be highlighted insynchrony with the scrolling action. This can assist the user inidentifying which pie wedge 220 corresponds to a given entry 212 in textmenu 206, so that identifying legends or the like are not needed. If thepie wedges are arranged such that adjacent list items correspond toadjacent wedges, then scrolling the list can produce a pleasingcircular-motion effect as highlighting shifts from one wedge to the nextaround the pie chart. Further, in some embodiments (e.g., where PMD 110provides a touch screen interface), the user may select a pie wedge 220and cause the corresponding text entry 212, as well as the selected piewedge, to become highlighted.

In addition, as different genres are selected, asset count 226 andplaying time indicator 224 can change to reflect the currently selectedgenre. Thus, for instance, in FIG. 2 asset count 226 indicates that theambient genre includes 315 songs with a total playing time of 3.5 hours.If the user selects a different genre, these numbers can changeaccordingly. These indicators provide the user with additionalinformation about how much content is available in each genre.

In some embodiments, the pie chart may provide information. For example,FIG. 4 illustrates GUI image 400 that can be generated by GUI engine 152and presented on display 135 of PMD 110 according to an embodiment ofthe present invention. GUI image 400 is generally similar to GUI image200, except that certain pie wedges 420 in pie chart 408 (e.g., piewedge 420 b, 420 d and 420 e) have been subdivided as shown by dottedlines. Such subdivisions can be used to indicate a further breakdown ofthe media assets.

For example, in some embodiments, metadata 142 for a stored media asset140 may include a sub-genre as well as a genre. Thus, assets 140 withinthe same genre (and therefore represented within the same pie wedge 420)can be further classified according to sub-genre. This classification isdepicted in pie chart 408 by subdividing the wedges. For example,suppose that the ambient genre, which corresponds to wedge 420 b, hasfour represented sub-genres (“ambient chill,” “indie,” “new age,” and“adult alternative.” Accordingly, wedge 420 b can be subdivided intofour sub-wedges 430 a-d, each corresponding to one of the sub-genres.The relative size of each sub-wedge 430 a-d can be determined based onthe number of tracks in each sub-genre as a fraction of the total numberof tracks in the parent genre; a process similar to process 300 can beused.

To delineate sub genres from one another or genres from one another,line weights of corresponding value may be used to distinguish oneregion from the other. For instance, a line weight lighter than thatused to separate pie wedges for different genres may be used todistinguish sub-genres. Still further subdivisions (e.g., sub-sub-genresor artists within a sub-genre) could also be shown, e.g., by using stilllighter line weights to represent the finer subdivisions or by usingfurther graphical elements, such as dashes, dots, or herringboneembellishments to delineate different regions. In principle, subdivisioncan be represented all the way down a hierarchy to the level of a singetrack.

In another embodiment, a user viewing GUI image 200 of FIG. 2 or GUIimage 400 of FIG. 4 can navigate into a currently selected genre. Whenthis happens, GUI engine 152 can update the image to reflect thenavigation. For example, FIG. 5 illustrates GUI image 500 that can begenerated by GUI engine 152 when a user navigates into the ambient genreaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. As before, thedisplay has a first area 502 that displays text menu 506 and a secondarea 504 that displays pie chart 508. Text menu 506 now lists sub-genresof the ambient genre, as indicated by title bar 210. Each entry 512 a-din text menu 506 includes the name of one of the sub-genres of theambient genre that is represented among stored media assets 140, andeach pie wedge 520 a-d in pie chart 508 corresponds to one of entries512 a-d. GUI image 500 can be generated using a process similar toprocess 300 described above, except that the universe of assets islimited to assets in the ambient genre. Likewise, asset count 526 andplaying time indicator 524 reflect the assets in a currently selectedsub-genre (e.g., the indie sub-genre) of the ambient genre. Thisnavigational procedure can be continued to sub-sub-genres, or to albumsor songs within a sub-genre.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of process 600 that can be implemented in GUIengine 152 to manage navigation according to an embodiment of thepresent invention. Process 600 starts (step 602), e.g., when databasenavigation is initialized. At step 604 GUI engine 152 presents aninitial GUI image to the user, providing navigational options. The GUIimage can include a text menu listing various options and a graphicalrepresentation corresponding to each option (e.g., a pie chart asdescribed above). At step 606, GUI engine 152 can receive user input;process 600 can wait until user input is received. At step 608, GUIengine 152 can determine whether the user input changes which optionshould be highlighted (e.g., whether the user is scrolling though theoptions). If so, then at step 610, GUI engine 152 can update the GUIimage by applying highlighting to both the text menu option and thegraphical representation of that option. At step 612, GUI engine 152 canupdate other elements of the GUI image, such as the track count andplayback time indicator described above. Process 600 can then return tostep 606 to await further user input.

If, at step 608, the user input is not related to a change inhighlighting, then at step 614 GUI engine 152 determines whether theuser input relates to selecting one of the navigation options. If so,then at step 616, GUI engine 152 can query the database for newinformation based on the selected navigation option. GUI engine 152 usesthe received information to generate a new GUI image and present thatimage to the user (step 604). Process 600 then returns to step 606 toawait further user input based on the new GUI image.

At step 614, if the user input is not related to selecting one of thenavigation options, process 600 can proceed to step 618 to process othertypes of user input. (Numerous examples of other types of user input andprocessing thereof are known in the art.) In some instances, processingother user input may result in returning to step 606 to await furtherinput; in other instances, processing other user input may result intermination of process 600.

It will be appreciated that the various GUI images depicted in thedrawings are illustrative and that variations and modifications arepossible. Elements can be arranged differently, and visual presentationcan use color and font in ways not shown herein. Identification ofparticular genres, sub-genres, asset counts and other information isprovided solely for illustrative purposes and is not intended to belimiting of invention.

In addition, GUI images similar to those illustrated herein can beapplied to other selections at other levels and paths of databasenavigation. For example, a user may initiate database navigationstarting from a top-level menu that prompts the user to select a mediatype (e.g., Music, Movies, Television, Podcasts, Audiobooks, etc.). In atop-level GUI image, the various media types can be listed in a textmenu in one area of a display, and a corresponding pie chart in anotherarea of the display can indicate the relative quantity of each mediatype stored on the PMD. Similarly to embodiments described above,quantity can be based on number of tracks, playback time, file size orthe like. As another example, a similar pie chart display could becreated showing a breakdown of artists, e.g., as sub-wedges within agenre wedge or with pie wedges corresponding to different artists. Instill other embodiments, pie chart displays can be used to show thebreakdown of genres of stored movie (e.g., drama, comedy, action,science fiction); TV series episodes (with each wedge corresponding to aseries); or to show any other distribution of content across some numberof sub-types or sub-categories within a larger category. Consequently,at each stage of database navigation and browsing, the user can bepresented with both textual and graphical representations of thedistribution of media assets across various navigation options and canuse this information to gain a better understanding of the breakdown ofcontent stored on the PMD.

In another embodiment, the user can also view pie chart representationsproviding a breakdown of content within a user-created (or automaticallygenerated) grouping of assets, such as a playlist. As used herein, a“playlist” is an ordered list of assets that have been grouped togethersuch that they can be delivered to the playback engine of a PMD as aunit. The playback engine can receive the playlist and queue the assetson the list for playback; in some embodiments, the playback engine caneither play the assets in listed order or can shuffle the list and playthe assets in a random order; the user may be able to select whether ornot a playlist is to be shuffled. Playlists can also be displayed forthe user's perusal and selection of individual tracks.

Pie chart representations can be presented side-by-side with a playlist.For instance, a pie chart presented together with a playlist can show abreakdown of tracks on a playlist by genre, by artist, by album, or thelike.

In another embodiment, a pie chart can represent each track of theplaylist as a pie wedge. The size can be proportional, e.g., to therelative duration of different tracks. FIG. 7 illustrates another GUIimage 700 that can be generated by GUI engine 152 and presented ondisplay 135 of PMD 110 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. Area 702 displays a playlist 706 that is in the process ofbeing played by PMD 110. Menu title bar 710 displays the name of theplaylist and menu entries 712 a-e list tracks on the playlist. As withother GUI images shown herein, if the number of tracks on the playlistexceeds the available space in area 702, scrolling techniques may beused to allow the user to view different portions of the playlist. Acurrently playing song, e.g., song 720 b, is highlighted.

Area 704 displays pie chart 708 corresponding to playlist 706. Wedges720 a-e can be arranged such that adjacent wedges in the clockwisedirection represent successive tracks 712 a-e. In this example, the sizeof each pie wedge 720 a-e is determined based on the length (playbacktime) of each track; thus, pie chart 708 provides visual informationabout the playback experience, such as how much of the total playbacktime will be consumed by different tracks. Highlighting can be used toindicate progress of playing the playlist. For example, wedgescorresponding to tracks that have been played (e.g., wedge 720 a) can beshown in one color as indicated by hatching, while wedges correspondingto tracks not yet played (e.g., wedges 720 c-e) can be shown in anothercolor. The wedge corresponding to the currently playing track (e.g.,wedge 720 b) can transition from the not-played color to the playedcolor as the track plays; for example, played-color area 724 can expandoutward as the track plays. Accordingly, GUI image 700 can aid a user invisualizing progress of playing a playlist.

GUI image 700 may also include other information, such as the tracklength and current playback point within the current track; title,artist, and album name for the current track; album artwork or lyricsrelated to the current track; or the like.

While the invention has been described with respect to specificembodiments, one skilled in the art will recognize that numerousmodifications are possible. For example, while pie charts are usedherein as graphical elements illustrating the relative proportions ofdifferent kinds of content, other graphical elements can be substituted,such as bar graphs where the height or length of each bar corresponds tothe quantity of a particular category or sub-category of asset that ispresent. The bar graph can be normalized such that the tallest orlongest bar is always the same size to provide a clear sense of relativeproportion. As another alternative, fill charts can be used, wheredifferent portions of a single bar are filled to represent theproportions of different categories of content. In addition, therelative quantity of assets in different categories can be determinedaccording to different measures of quantity; examples include number ofassets, track length (or playback time) of the assets, size of the assetdata (e.g., in bytes), or any other measure that can provide the userwith helpful information as to relative quantity. In some embodiments,different measures may be used for graphically representing differentcategorizations, and the GUI image may include an indication of themeasure used to generate a particular representation. A user may also beable to select a desired measure, thus customizing the display.

Any categorization supported by the metadata associated with storedassets can be used as the basis of a graphical representation. Thus, forexample, a user might be able to view tracks grouped according to userrating, number of times played, or the like. Different graphicalrepresentations can be used for presenting different groupings of data;for instance, bar graphs may be well suited to presenting informationsuch as user rating or number of times played, where the possiblecategory values correspond to numbers, allowing the bars to be arrangedin numerical order.

In some embodiments, color can be used to represent some characteristicof an asset. For example, consider a pie wedge representing tracks in aparticular genre. These tracks can be divided based on some furthercharacteristic, such as whether the artist is normally associated withthat genre or has crossed over from a different genre in creating aparticular track. Different colors (e.g., different intensities of thesame color or primary vs. secondary colors) can be used to indicate thestrength of an artist's association with a genre. As another example,color might be used to distinguish “live” recordings from studiorecordings, original recordings from remixes, or the like.

It may be possible for one asset to belong to multiple categories on alist of categories, e.g., to multiple genres or sub-genres. In someembodiments, where a particular asset may be a member of two sub genres,the graphical representations of the two sub genres may be positionedadjacent to one another in the overall graphical representation (e.g.,in FIG. 4, the sub-wedges corresponding to overlapping sub-genres may beadjacent and may overlap, e.g., as described above.

Further, in addition to or instead of color, fill patterns, shades,glittering, animation, or other visual distinctions may be used todistinguish tracks, indicate highlighting, or the like. It may also bepossible, by using multiple graphical delineations (e.g., hue,intensity, lines, embellishments and the like), to present more than oneaspect of metadata at one time in one display for a library of assets.In other embodiments, a user may be able to define or selecthighlighting schemes and thus customize the display to his or hertastes.

Graphical interfaces as described herein can also be implemented in amedia asset management application executing on a host computer to whicha portable media device can connect from time to time. Thus, forexample, the user may be able to use the host computer's interface toview and interact with graphical information descriptive of stored mediaassets on a portable media device. The interface may provide otherinformation, e.g., using contrasting colors, color intensity, or othercolor information to indicate changes in the composition of thedatabase. For instance, in a pie wedge corresponding a particular genre,contrasting colors might be used to signal a distinction between newlyadded tracks in that genre and previously added tracks.

Thus, although the invention has been described with respect to specificembodiments, it will be appreciated that the invention is intended tocover all modifications and equivalents within the scope of thefollowing claims.

1. A method of graphically representing media assets stored on aportable media device, the method comprising: presenting, on a firstportion of a display of the portable media device, a listing of aplurality of values of a first metadata item associated with the mediaassets, wherein each value of the first metadata item is associated withat least one of the media assets in an initial set of media assets; andpresenting, on a second portion of the display, a graphicalrepresentation comprising a plurality of elements, each element beingassociated with a different one of the plurality of values of the firstmetadata item, wherein relative sizes of elements in the plurality ofelements represent a distribution of the media assets in the initial setof media assets across the plurality of values of the first metadataitem.
 2. The method of claim 1 further comprising: receiving user inputselecting one of the listed values of the first metadata item;highlighting the selected value of the first metadata item on thelisting; and highlighting the element of the graphical representationthat corresponds to the selected value.
 3. The method of claim 2 whereinhighlighting the selected value of the first metadata item on thelisting includes changing at least one of a foreground color, abackground color, or a font feature of an entry in the listing thatcorresponds to the selected value relative to other entries in thelisting.
 4. The method of claim 2 wherein highlighting the element ofthe graphical representation includes changing at least one of a colorvalue for the element, a color intensity for the element, a patternapplied to the element, or a size of the element relative to otherelements of the graphical representation.
 5. The method of claim 2wherein highlighting the element of the graphical representationincludes changing at least one of a line width for a line defining aboundary of the element or a line style for the line defining a boundaryof the element.
 6. The method of claim 2 wherein highlighting theelement of the graphical representation includes animating the element.7. The method of claim 1 further comprising: receiving user inputselecting one of the plurality of values of the first metadata item;identifying a subset of the media assets, wherein each media asset inthe subset is associated with the selected value of the first metadataitem; presenting, on the first portion of the display, a new listing ofa plurality of values of a second metadata item associated with themedia assets in the subset of the media assets, wherein each value ofthe second metadata item is associated with at least one of the mediaassets in the subset of the media assets; and presenting, on the secondportion of the display, a new graphical representation comprising aplurality of new elements, each new element being associated with adifferent one of the plurality of values of the second metadata item,wherein relative sizes of new elements in the plurality of new elementsrepresent a distribution of the media assets in the subset of the mediaassets across the plurality of values of the second metadata item. 8.The method of claim 1 further comprising: determining the distributionof the media assets across the plurality of values of the first metadataitem based on a count of the media assets that are associated with eachof the plurality of values.
 9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:determining the distribution of the media assets across the plurality ofvalues of the first metadata item based on respective track lengths ofthe media assets that are associated with each of the plurality ofvalues.
 10. The method of claim 1 further comprising: determining thedistribution of the media assets across the plurality of values of thefirst metadata item based on file sizes of the media assets that areassociated with each of the plurality of values.
 11. The method of claim1 wherein the graphical representation comprises a pie chart and eachelement is a wedge of the pie chart.
 12. The method of claim 11 whereinan angular extent of each of the wedges is proportional to a fraction ofmedia assets in the initial set of media assets that has each of theplurality of values of the first metadata item, wherein the fraction ismeasured according to a count of the media assets that are associatedwith each of the plurality of values.
 13. The method of claim 11 whereinan angular extent of each of the wedges is proportional to a fraction ofmedia assets in the initial set of media assets that has each of theplurality of values of the first metadata item, wherein the fraction ismeasured according to track lengths of the media assets that areassociated with each of the plurality of values.
 14. The method of claim11 wherein an angular extent of each of the wedges is proportional to afraction of media assets in the initial set of media assets that haseach of the plurality of values of the first metadata item, wherein thefraction is measured according to file sizes of the media assets thatare associated with each of the plurality of values.
 15. The method ofclaim 11 further comprising, for at least a first one of the wedges ofthe pie chart, the first one of the wedges corresponding to a firstvalue of the first metadata item: selecting a second metadata itemhaving a plurality of values; for each of the media assets associatedwith the first value of the first metadata item, determining a value ofthe second metadata item; and presenting, on the display, the first oneof the wedges as being subdivided into a plurality of sub-wedges, eachone of the sub-wedges being associated with a different one of theplurality of values of the second metadata item, wherein relative sizesof the sub-wedges represent a distribution of the media assetsassociated with the first value of the first metadata item across theplurality of values of the second metadata item.
 16. The method of claim15 wherein the first item of metadata corresponds to a firstclassification of the media assets and the second item of metadatacorresponds to a sub-classification of the media assets within the firstclassification.
 17. The method of claim 16 wherein the first item ofmetadata corresponds to a genre and the second item of metadatacorresponds to a sub-genre.
 18. The method of claim 15 wherein the firstitem of metadata corresponds to a first classification of the mediaassets and the second item of metadata corresponds to a secondclassification of the media assets that is independent of the firstclassification.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein the first item ofmetadata corresponds to a genre and the second item of metadatacorresponds to an artist.
 20. The method of claim 1 wherein the firstmetadata item corresponds to a genre.
 21. The method of claim 1 whereinthe first metadata item corresponds to an artist.
 22. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the first metadata item is an item selected from a groupconsisting of a genre, an artist, a user rating, and a media type.
 23. Amethod of graphically representing a playlist of media assets beingplayed on a portable media device, the method comprising: presenting, ona first portion of a display of the portable media device, a listing ofidentifiers of each of the media assets on the playlist; presenting, ona second portion of the display, a graphical representation including anelement corresponding to each of the media assets on the playlist,wherein a respective size of each element of the graphicalrepresentation reflects a duration of the corresponding media asset onthe playlist.
 24. The method of claim 23 wherein presenting thegraphical representation includes selecting a color for each elementdepending on whether the corresponding media asset has been played. 25.The method of claim 24 further comprising: while one of the media assetsis being played, applying a color transition to the correspondingelement of the graphical representation.
 26. A graphical user interfacefor a portable media device having a store of media assets, thegraphical user interface comprising: a user input control operable by auser to make a selection; a first display area configured to display alist having a plurality of entries, each entry corresponding to adifferent one of a plurality of values for a metadata item, wherein eachof the entries on the list is selectable by operation of the user inputcontrol; a second display area configured to display a plurality ofgraphical elements, each graphical element corresponding to a differentone of the plurality of values of the metadata item, wherein a size ofeach element indicates a proportion of the media assets stored by theportable media player that have the value of the corresponding metadataitem; and a processor configured to receive a user selection of one ofthe entries on the list from the user input control and to update thelist area and the graphical representation area to highlight both theselected entry and the one of the graphical elements that corresponds tothe same value of the metadata item as the selected entry.
 27. Thegraphical user interface of claim 26 wherein the first display area andthe second display area are different portions of a single displayscreen.